Coal study paves way for coalition deal on mining limits

A report on the Czech Republic’s future demand and sources of coal looks
like it could open the way for a deal on the thorny issue of whether
current coal mining limits should be relaxed. Abandoning the limits at the
Bílina mine is recommended while the case for the same at ČSA is
undermined.

Photo: Tomáš Adamec
A study commissioned by finance minister and ANO leader Andrej Babiš
raises the chances of a compromise deal within the government over the
question of whether to relax existing coal mining limits.

The unresolved question of whether to keep with the limits decided at the
start of the 1990s or relax them so that mining of brown could continue at
the Bílina mine, owned by ČEZ subsidiary Severočeské doly, or the ČSA
mine, operated by Severní energetiká, caused the adoption of a new long
term energy plan for the country to be stalled at the end of last year.
Most other ministers stood up against Minister of Industry and Trade Jan
Mládek’s proposal that the limits should be relaxed at least at Bílina
and possibly also at ČSA, although the latter would probably entail the
destruction of at least part of the town of Horní Jiřetin.

The study carried out for minister Babiš by Carbounion Bohemia on future
demand and stocks of coal comes down clearly in favour of relaxing the
limits for Bílina but concludes that no real case is made for the same to
take place at ČSA. On the basis of that recommendation, it is possible to
imagine Babiš and Mládek sealing a deal and the rest of the coalition
falling in line.

The study points out that even if mining limits at both sites are relaxed
this will not allow Czech coal consumption to continue at current levels of
around 40 million tonnes a year. But the phase out of many older and less
efficient coal-fired power plants means that Czech consumption is set to
dramatically fall over the next decades.

And even if it did not, imports of coal from neighbouring Germany are
already taking place and could continue into the future. The study
highlights the fact that Czech heat and power company EPH is already
sourcing most of the coal supplies for its Opatovice plant from Germany.
And this knocks over the long sustained argument that Czech coal supplies
can’t be imported and must be found on home ground.

The study adds that the ČSA coal mine is currently only a minor supplier
to Czech heating plants, which are seen as most at risk if local coal
supplies dwindle. The mine supplies 5-6 percent of current needs but the
relaxation of the Bílina limits would probably be enough to prevent major
supply problems in the next 30 years. In fact, it warns that it would be
difficult to find outlets for ČSA coal if the limits there were abandoned
and no new coal-fired power plants came on stream. If necessary, the limits
question at ČSA could be opened up again in 10-15 years, the study adds.
So, a coalition deal on the coal limits could be possible. That still
though leaves the question of who should pilot construction and guarantee
the financial case of for new nuclear plants to be solved before the long
term energy concept can be sealed.